U.S. media group Tribune's shareholders overwhelmingly approved a proposed 8.2 billion U.S. dollars buyout led by real estate tycoon Sam Zell on Tuesday, stepping closer to going private.

The deal won support from 97 percent of votes cast. Two percent of the votes opposed the buyout and 1 percent abstained.

"If you were asked your opinion -- should I vote for something that would give me 34 dollars for something currently valued at 27 dollars, what would your choice be? I can't believe that 2 percent opposed," Barrington Research analyst James Goss said.

The buyout was initially announced in April. But investors have been recently doubting the deal to turn Tribune from a public company into an employee-owned one due to the company's weak performance and deteriorating newspaper and credit markets.

"I believe Tribune Company is reasserting itself as a national leader in news generation and distribution," Zell said in a statement. "Despite the recent upheaval in the credit markets, my view of the company as an investment has not changed."

Tribune owns 11 daily newspapers, including The Los Angeles Times and The Baltimore Sun, plus 23 television stations and the Chicago Cubs. Tribune has already said that it expects to raise more than 1 billion dollars by selling the Cubs, its share in a sports cable network and company real estate but it does not plan to sell additional newspapers.

It is expected that the deal will gain approval of Federal Communications Commission and to close in the fourth quarter.